BOULDER / LONDON (IT BOLTWISE) – A new study shows how the brains of mice learn to distinguish between real and harmless threats. Researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder have identified a specific brain circuit that helps adjust immune responses. This discovery could provide important insights into the treatment of anxiety disorders.
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The brain’s ability to distinguish between real and harmless threats is crucial for survival. A new study in mice has shown how a specific brain circuit helps adapt defensive responses when a threat is recognized as harmless. The focus of the research is the interpeduncular nucleus, a structure in the midbrain that has been identified as a key regulator of this learning process. The results, published in the journal Molecular Psychiatryprovide insights into the neural mechanisms that enable flexible and appropriate responses to threats.
The researchers observed the behavior of mice in a specially designed area that provided both open spaces and sheltered hiding places. A visual stimulus that simulated an approaching bird of prey triggered natural defense reactions in the mice. In the first days of the experiments, the mice showed strong defensive responses, but these decreased over time as they learned that the threat was not real.
To understand the neural basis of this learning process, the scientists focused on the activity of GABAergic neurons in the interpeduncular nucleus. These neurons initially showed high activity, but this decreased over time, which correlated with the reduction in the mice’s defensive behaviors. Using optogenetics, the researchers were able to specifically influence the activity of these neurons, thereby confirming the importance of this circuit in adapting defense responses.
The study also examined a specific connection from the interpeduncular nucleus to the laterodorsal tegmental nucleus. This connection was crucial for learning that a threat is harmless, rather than for the initial defensive response itself. The results of this research could have important implications for understanding anxiety disorders and other stress-related conditions in which these learning processes are disrupted.
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